The next of the infant colonies of Great Britain in New Holland, which offers itself to our attention, as the eye ranges over the map of that huge island, is the very recently formed settlement of Southern Australia. This is situated upon the southern coast likewise, and consists of a large block of country, the inland parts of which have not yet been explored, forming three sides of a square, with the fourth side broken and jagged by the inclination and indentations of the coast, which are here very considerable. The area of South Australia thus marked out is supposed to be about 310,000 square miles, containing upwards of 98,000,000 of acres; that is to say, it is double the size of the three British kingdoms, and not much less than that of France.[153] The mode of colonizing this extensive tract of country is proposed to be upon different principles from those elsewhere followed in Australia. No transported convicts are ever to be sent there. No free grants of land are to be made, but land can become private property by purchase alone, and the whole of the purchase-money is proposed to be spent in the encouragement of emigration. The emigrants to be conveyed by means of this fund, without expense to the colony, were to be of both sexes in equal numbers, and the preference is to be given to young married persons not having children. The prospect of having a representative assembly was held out to the colony, but the population was to exceed 50,000 before it could be lawful for the Crown to grant this. [153] See Report of Committee on South Australia, p. 78. Evidence of T. F. Elliot, Esq. Answer 733. From the same source, the report of this Parliamentary Committee in 1841, much of the information respecting Southern Australia is derived.